The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons

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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2017 5:46 pm 
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So I've started to do something similar over at the Facebook page, but it seemed like a good idea to give it a try over here at the homebase as well. 30 years of Science Fiction Marathons have spawned quite the cosmic trove of memories. In honor of three decades of this insanity, here's a countdown of the fliers for those events. I'll add memories of my own where relevant. But feel free to chime in as well in the event that you were at a particular Marathon.

We'll catch up with SF1 and SF2!

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PostPosted: Mon Feb 27, 2017 11:37 am 
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 28, 2017 8:37 am 
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Great, now I have The Blob theme song stuck in my head.

...it creeps, and leaps, and glides and slides across the floor, right through the door and all around the room...dammit, this is gonna be all day for me.


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PostPosted: Tue Feb 28, 2017 2:16 pm 
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The countdown continues with 1990's 4th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH! This predates my attendance by a few years, but it's interesting to see the emergence of premieres as a new staple of the film lineups. The surprise premiere was the Dolph Lundgren action vehicle DARK ANGEL, which would later be renamed I COME IN PEACE. And granted, calling MONSTER OF PIEDRAS BLANCA a Columbus Premiere is, while technically true, somewhat of a stretch (a point for which I've needled my partner in crime over the years.) Also of note: a whopping 8 of the 13 films were from before 1970. Of course, the modern time corollary would be a plethora of films from the '80s, which doesn't seem that far away.

Anyone here on the board attend SF4 in person?


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PostPosted: Tue Feb 28, 2017 2:36 pm 
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Joe Neff wrote:
Anyone here on the board attend SF4 in person?

My first marathon, in fact. First time ever seeing FORBIDDEN PLANET on the big screen, too.

We bugged out for food during something ... PIEDRAS BLANCAS, maybe. Pretty sure I slept through TARANTULA. :)

(*NOTE: I do not recall staying for ATTACK OF THE 50FT WOMAN, but I believe that's where I learned that Giant Person Fetishes have their own name ... Macrophilia, as does the fetish of being EATEN by another giant person ... Vorarephilia. You learn something new every day, I guess.)

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 01, 2017 12:20 pm 
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It's a landmark year for the Science Fiction Marathon as the 5th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH is unleashed upon the world! Some historical musings:

-This was, of course, the first Marathon appearance of both the 1951 version of THE THING and John Carpenter's classic remake. The latter would go on to screen again at the 1st Annual SHOCK AROUND THE CLOCK in 2009, while the former was absent from Marathon screens until the 2009 Science Fiction Marathon.

-The Surprise Premiere ended up being Roger Corman's FRANKENSTEIN UNBOUND.

-On a fun historical note, the first of the two locally produced shorts that would premiere at this event was "The Late, Late Show" by budding filmmaker, future UPN producer, and Marathon decorations stalwart Todd Babbert. The other debuting local short was a little film called "Loaf", which apparently is a brief ALIEN parody by some guy named....O'Bannon? O'Byron? Seems to be a follow up to some NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD spoof that he debuted at the previous year's Horror Marathon. Hmmmm, wonder whatever happened to that guy?

-From the Annals of Outrage: years ago, during my tenure at the Drexel, I was privy to an angry letter from a concerned Marathoid concerning DEATH RACE 2000 playing at such an early hour. They were shocked, shocked, SHOCKED by the nudity and violence on display that early in the event. And went into great detail about said shock. I'm guessing that a few of you who were there in your younger guises can attest as to whether this screening truly did irrevocably scar and warp your delicate minds.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 01, 2017 3:43 pm 
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Joe Neff wrote:
by some guy named....O'Bannon? O'Byron?

Come on, Joe ... I have it on good authority that Dan O'Bannon only wrote LOAF. And by wrote, I mean inspired. And by authority I mean, who's this O'Byron guy again?

Joe Neff wrote:
this screening truly did irrevocably scar and warp your delicate minds.

That's what you want to blame it on? OK by me, I guess.

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PostPosted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 10:35 am 
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Joe Neff wrote:
Anyone here on the board attend SF4 in person?


Like I said on the FB page, this was my first Sci-Fi Marathon, although I had attended the Horror marathon the previous October. I was 12, and while I think I only left the theatre once (to get food at JD Ritzys), I have to confess that my memories of this one are pretty vague. I remember seeing almost every film on the line-up, but not specifically watching them there, in that theatre.

The exception, of course, is WHAT'S UP HIDEOUS SUN DEMON? I remember laughing my butt off during that movie. I also remember "Dark Angel", and being allowed to vote on the name at the end. "I Come In Peace" was the only logical choice, of course.


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 10:44 am 
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Joe Neff wrote:
It's a landmark year for the Science Fiction Marathon as the 5th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH is unleashed upon the world!


This might be one of my favorite Sci Fi Marathons to look back on. At 13, I was now old enough to be there without a supervisory adult sitting with me the whole time. I had started to find groups of friends to sit with, and it was before I had to bring my younger brother along. (Something I grew to enjoy, but not during those first few years.) It was also one of the few Marathons from my High School years I didn't have to miss part of for one reason or another.

Both versions of THE THING were movies I had seen, but not more than once or twice, so I loved the heck out of these. It was the first time I'd seen DEATH RACE 2000, and that movie is just unrepentantly enjoyable. MEET THE APPLEGATES stuck with me for a long time after that event, and I would argue that it still holds up as enjoyable little film.

And how can we forget TREMORS? That movie was made for our marathoid audience.

Yeah, I really look back on this one fondly.


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 12:52 pm 
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1992 saw the 6th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH paying sly tribute to the quincentenary of its host's city's namesake's landing in America by establishing a The Next 500 Years theme. Some notes on the event:

-This was the first attempt to show the classics ROCKETSHIP X-M at the Marathon...and attempt that didn't quite work out. And which also didn't work out in 1995 (more on that later.) In fact, Lloyd Bridges's adventures in space wouldn't see the light of the Marathon screen until 1998. In its place, PROJECT MOONBASE showed at this iteration of the event.

-The premieres were starting to attract guests! Hans Bachmann and Phillip J Cook accompanied the U.S. Premiere of their film INVADER, while Scottish actor Neil Duncan was on hand to introduce the World Premiere of the Rutger Hauer action flick SPLIT SECOND.

-At this point in time, Giorgio Moroder's 1984 restoration of METROPOLIS was the best, most complete version available. It also had that distinctly '80s pop soundtrack, so the decision was made to switch the sound off and have local pianist Robert Baker accompany the film instead (which, naturally, was a smashing success.) Interestingly enough, time has been kind to the Moroder restoration: it received a nice re-release in 2011, and some of the artists on the soundtrack have become more beloved than they once were. Even with the presence of the nearly complete 2hr 40min version of the film (with the magnificent original score), the Moroder version remains a fascinating alternate take on this cinematic classic.

-This event (and this year) arguably marked the peak of the original Marathon experience. The Science Fiction Marathon was selling out regularly, and the Horror Marathon was drawing crowds that were almost as large. On the video footage of this Marathon that we have in the archives (some of which you just miiiiiight see at an upcoming anniversary event), there's a moment where Jeff Frank is speaking with a Marathoid after the event and saying that they might have to start looking for a bigger theater. Viewed today, it's a very melancholy passage, as we all know that change was looming on the horizon. But for the moment, these Marathons were basking in their moment in the sun.


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 11:55 pm 
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My first year was the 9th (Atomic Cafe) when I was 19-years-old. I'm 41 now. Although I'm a die hard, and I have loved every single year since for each year's particular distinct lingering flavor in the memory, I would like a return to the 9th in one particular aspect... bear with me. I'm a father to a two year old little girl, and I'm thinking forward to the day when I will take her for her first marathon experience. Granted, this is not happening for a while, nor am I wishing for her to grow up too fast and have a horde of horny goth assholes showing up on my front porch and me ending up in jail for murder. All in good time.

What I remember about my first experience was walking into the lobby to an incredible presentation of volunteers decked out in hazmat suits, handing out mysterious knicknacks and packages as I worked my way down the cow chute. It was all incredibly mysterious, strange and amazing. The very next year, all of that effort in the front door presentation seemed to disappear. Walking in hasn't so much been a part of the overall experience since. Last year, 2016, we didn't even get wrist bands or quirky hand stamps! Bring back the darn wrist bands and hand stamps!!! No matter if they're *necessary*. They are part of the experience - pleeeeease.

This is not a complaint, as I am ridiculously grateful that after 30 years, the marathon exists at all and that so many recognizable faces are still showing up. It really is one of the absolute favorite things I have to look forward to every year. I'm simply voicing something real that I've thought over the years on the hope that it may help those in charge when planning. Duck Dodgers, Gravity, Spaceboy should be programmed in religiously and never be omitted. It makes the experience.

I have assumed, through the passing of years, that the front door presentation sort of deteriorated after the 9th because our venues were always up in the air after that. But now, we clearly have a rooted venue in the Bexley Drexel (SO glad we can again call a Drexel theater home). So with this consistency and solid venue every year, how about a renewed focus on the in-the-door overall presentation? Bring back the hazmat suits. Those were too cool.


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PostPosted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 1:21 pm 
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The 1993 IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH! The 7th edition of this legendary event also marked my first ever Marathon! Some notes:

-After years of reading about the Marathons in HOOT (Irv Oslin's wonderful cartoon free weekly, and a longtime supporter of our humble events), my interest in them had sorta faded into the background. Plus, as I've said before many times, I never figured that my parents would let me attend when I was younger. But now at a ripe old 16, a good friend of mine suggested that we attend. Little did I know how profoundly this little movie fest would influence/warp my life.

-Part of what made the Marathon so memorable for me was the bookending of INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, neither of which I had ever seen in their entirety. Man oh man, what a way to end an event! My friend and I still talk about it to this day.

-THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS never made the final lineup, but premieres of BLOBBERMOUTH (featuring new dialogue by the comedy troupe The L.A. Connection...no relation to our pal from Boston) and George Romero's THE DARK HALF (which played in the middle of the night) did.

-The infamous BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS story! Slated for next to last in the lineup, this Corman actioner played just fine for about an hour, but then kept breaking in the projector. Finally, in an effort to stay relatively on time (a hazy concept in any Marathon setting), the rest of the film was cancelled in favor of getting to Donald Sutherland and friends. Upon exiting the theater that day, Marathoids were able to pick up some of the broken BATTLE film frames in a styrofoam cup by the front doors!

-Seeing the Director's Cut of THE ABYSS was a real treat. And I still maintain that for any of its flaws, ROBOCOP 2 is the perfect late Marathon film to wake up the audience.


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PostPosted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 5:00 pm 
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Ah, SF7. This is another year I look back on with a great deal of fondness. I was a Sophomore in High School, and IIRC this was the first Marathon I was able to attend with my girlfriend at the time. (And yet, I still actually watched most of the movies.)

I remember being disappointed in BLOBBERMOUTH. I was expecting it to be funnier, and instead I found it annoying. I loved starting (and ending) with BODY SNATCHERS, and I remember loving getting the premiere of THE DARK HALF.

I had, somehow, never actually seen THE ABYSS until that year's marathon, and found it to be a really good time, despite the rather long runtime of the Director's Cut.

And I still have my broken celluloid from BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS.


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PostPosted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:31 pm 
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Joe Neff wrote:
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The countdown continues with 1990's 4th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH! This predates my attendance by a few years, but it's interesting to see the emergence of premieres as a new staple of the film lineups. The surprise premiere was the Dolph Lundgren action vehicle DARK ANGEL, which would later be renamed I COME IN PEACE. And granted, calling MONSTER OF PIEDRAS BLANCA a Columbus Premiere is, while technically true, somewhat of a stretch (a point for which I've needled my partner in crime over the years.) Also of note: a whopping 8 of the 13 films were from before 1970. Of course, the modern time corollary would be a plethora of films from the '80s, which doesn't seem that far away.

Anyone here on the board attend SF4 in person?


That was my first sci-fi marathon. I was so excited to get this flyer in the mail after attending my first horror marathon the previous October at the impressionable age of 13. This was back when you could smoke in the lobby and I remember my friends and I being cool 8th graders lighting up and our regular substitute teacher seeing us and saying "Don't worry, I don't give a f**k if you smoke." I Come In Peace was a huge crowd pleaser after a lot of slower, older films. I'd still love to see What's Up Hideous Sun Demon again somewhere.

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:36 pm 
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AEinhorn wrote:
Joe Neff wrote:
It's a landmark year for the Science Fiction Marathon as the 5th Annual IT CAME FROM THE DREXEL NORTH is unleashed upon the world!


This might be one of my favorite Sci Fi Marathons to look back on. At 13, I was now old enough to be there without a supervisory adult sitting with me the whole time. I had started to find groups of friends to sit with, and it was before I had to bring my younger brother along. (Something I grew to enjoy, but not during those first few years.) It was also one of the few Marathons from my High School years I didn't have to miss part of for one reason or another.

Both versions of THE THING were movies I had seen, but not more than once or twice, so I loved the heck out of these. It was the first time I'd seen DEATH RACE 2000, and that movie is just unrepentantly enjoyable. MEET THE APPLEGATES stuck with me for a long time after that event, and I would argue that it still holds up as enjoyable little film.

And how can we forget TREMORS? That movie was made for our marathoid audience.

Yeah, I really look back on this one fondly.


That was a great marathon! Death Race 2000 for the first time with that audience was something I've never been able to recapture. And Tremors is loooooooong overdue for a return. Meet the Applegates was quite fun and I watched it again on VHS in maybe 2002 when people still had VCRs and DVD players. Held up nicely. I even appreciated the widescreen splendor of Journey to the Center of the Earth.

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